Girls' and Boys' Am

Report: Weather-affected opening day at Girls' and Boys' Amateurs

The R&A

12 Aug 24

3 mins

On a weather-affected morning that saw play suspended for 90 minutes due to the threat of lightning, Hellberg handled the muggy conditions the best to sign for a three-under-par 68 at Moortown. Over the former Ryder Cup venue, the 18-year-old carded four birdies on his back nine to shine.

Pleasing start

“I’m really pleased with 68,” said the runner-up in this year’s French Boys’ Under-18s. “I kept it out of the thick stuff. The ground is hard and you have to account for that. “I hit a lot of good chip shots and saved some pars. I also made a couple of putts and it was really solid. This is my third appearance in the Boys’ Amateur and I’ve missed the cut the two previous times so hopefully that changes this year.” Tucked in behind on two-under are England’s Harry Cox, Kayden Chang from the Netherlands and Dane Mads Heller after their 69s. “I’m pleased with my start,” said Chang, 18, making his second start in the Boys’ Amateur. “I hit a lot of drivers and 3-woods to find as many fairways as I could. I still three-putted twice which was frustrating. You have to be accurate and straight here.

Cox chasing match play berth

“At the beginning of the season I didn’t play well but my game has been more consistent and I’m more confidence. I enjoyed the course and my goal in this Championship was to have fun.” Cox, who made back-to-back birdies at the 6^th and 7^th, added, “I was pretty steady, didn’t miss many greens and my pace putting was good. You have to be straight off the tee here and control your spin as the greens are solid and the pins are tough.” The 17-year-old, who missed out by a shot in his bid for the match play stages last year, continued, “I feel like I’m hitting good form and reached the quarter-finals last week at the English Amateur.” The group on one-under includes Scot Dominic McGlinchey and another Englishman, Oscar Lent.

Leevi Hellberg - Finland

“I hit a lot of good chip shots and saved some pars. I also made a couple of putts and it was really solid. This is my third appearance in the Boys’ Amateur and I’ve missed the cut the two previous times so hopefully that changes this year.”

Bisset impresses in Girls’ Amateur

England’s Lila Bisset experienced a rollercoaster of a day in the Girls’ Amateur Championship at Alwoodley but still finished in a share of the lead after the opening stroke play qualifying round. The 15-year-old from Northamptonshire posted an eventful four-under 68 to set the early pace alongside Melliyall Schmitt of France and Sweden’s Ebba Lundqvist. Bisset, who failed to make the qualifying grade in last year’s Championship, burst out of the blocks with a brace of birdies at the 1^st and 2^nd and made another gain on the 6^th. A raking putt from just off the green on the 10^th spawned an eagle-three and the English girl moved to six-under when she picked up another birdie on the 11th. Alwoodley’s testing closing stretch would provide plenty of menace and mischief, however, and a bogey on the 15^th was followed by a double-bogey on the 16^th as Bisset made a costly excursion into the heather. She rallied on the last, though, and a two-putt birdie from 30-feet helped repair some of that earlier damage.

Topsy-turvy day

“It was an up-and-down day,” said Bisset, who earned her first-ever World Amateur Golf Ranking® (WAGR®) points this season when she won the prestigious Tigress Tournament at Northampton. “The last four or five holes here are really tough so I thought that if I could make my score in the earlier holes then I’d be OK.” Schmitt made a nervy start with a three-putt bogey on the 1^st but a chip-in for birdie on the 3^rd settled her down. After play resumed at 11.30am following the lighting threat, Schmitt restarted with vigour and picked up three birdies in her next five holes to surge up the order. “I was very nervous on the first,” admitted Schmitt, who finished fourth in The R&A’s Girls’ U16 Championship in April. “After the delay, I didn’t feel as nervous and played really well.” The 16-year-old’s French compatriot, Perrine Delacour, won the Girls’ Amateur at West Lancashire back in 2009. “It would be great to follow her,” added Schmitt.

International leaderboard

Lundqvist had been four-under after 14 but her charge was halted with a double-bogey on the 15^th. The 18-year-old produced a spirited response and birdied the 16^th and 18^th to vault back into a tie at the top. France’s Manon Petitcolas is lurking two shots behind after a 70 while India’s Mannat Brar conjured a purposeful back-nine to post a two-under score of her own. One-over through nine holes, the 17-year-old came home in three-under to bolster her qualifying push. “Last year I lost in the first round but I am here to win,” said Brar, whose spirits have been lifted by a number of strong showings among the professionals on the Women’s Pro Golf Tour in her native India. I really like this course and I’m feeling very confident.” The second day of stroke play qualifying takes place at both venues on Tuesday ahead of the last-64 match play stages.

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